My confidence in muscle stretch for more mass is growing. More studies continue to verify the importance of emphasizing the target muscle when it’s elongated to get the most gain bang from each set…
And I’ve mentioned X-Reps on multiple occasions, which is partial pulses near the stretch at the end of a set…
After your last rep, usually one rep short of failure, you lower to the stretch area of the stroke and do 10-inch partial reps to extend the set and fast-twitch activation.
However, I’ve also said that using those end-of-set stretch partials is not a great idea on most stretch-position exercises, like incline curls…
That’s because at full stretch, the target muscle is in a more precarious position—injury potential is higher. On the above exercise, the pull on the biceps and its connective tissue is fairly severe, depending on the depth of the incline. No need to describe possible consequences of too much overload combined with a jerk…
Even so, you can extend a stretch-position set for a mass boost. Simple hold the stretch position at the end of your full-range set—a Stretch Hold. Yes, it’s a bit painful, as you can see from the look on my face above—although that could be lean-diet constipation…
Dr. Jacob Wilson, who used to write for Iron Man when I was the editor there, performed a study with that static-hold method…
He calls it “intraset stretching.” In his study, the subjects who included intraset stretching DOUBLED muscle thickness compared to those who did not use it. Amazing.
He says, “This method takes advantage of two important mechanisms of hypertrophy: It increases muscular tension, and it increases the cell-swelling response. Activating these mechanisms leads to more growth.”
Dr. Wilson’s study used leg press calf raises, a good stretch-positions exercise for lower-leg mass. The study had subjects hold for 30 seconds, or as long as they could, at the end of sets.
His motivation to test this was the bird study I discuss in Old Man, Young Muscle that was performed by Dr. Jose Antonio in 1993. (Med Sci Sports Exerc. 25:1333-45; 1993) Progressive stretch resistance on a bird’s wing over many weeks produced a 300 percent increase in muscle growth. Yes, 300 percent!…
Give X-Holds a try at the end of your add-on stretch exercise and watch as you pack on new muscle size.
New: Get the ideal exercise for each muscle, the best add-on moves for ultimate mass, complete 35-minute workouts, exercise start/finish photos, and details on building muscle fast and efficiently in Old Man, Young Muscle.
And you still get The Muscle-On, Belly-Gone “Diet” ebook FREE for a limited time when you add Old Man, Young Muscle to your mass-building library. Go HERE.
Till next time, train hard—and smart—for BIG results.
—Steve Holman
Former Editor in Chief, Iron Man Magazine
www.X-Rep.com
Recommended
7-Minute “Miracle Fix” for Stubborn Belly Fat
Researchers from The Proceedings of The Nutrition Society are suggesting this “blood flow hack” is the fastest way to melt off frozen belly fat with minimal effort.
So if you want to switch on your fat-switch in just 7 minutes—without going to the gym or running on the treadmill, then check this out: